Radical Technologies: The Design of Everyday Life

Written by Adam Greenfield

Narrated by Michael Butler Murray

Everywhere we turn, a startling new device promises to transfigure our lives. But at what cost? In this urgent and revelatory excavation of our Information Age, leading technology thinker Adam Greenfield forces us to reconsider our relationship with the networked objects, services, and spaces that define us. It is time to re-evaluate the Silicon Valley consensus determining the future.



We're told that innovations—from augmented-reality interfaces and virtual assistants to autonomous delivery drones and self-driving cars—will make life easier, more convenient, and more productive. 3D printing promises unprecedented control over the form and distribution of matter, while the blockchain stands to revolutionize everything from the recording and exchange of value to the way we organize the mundane realities of the day to day. And, all the while, fiendishly complex algorithms are operating quietly in the background, reshaping the economy, transforming the fundamental terms of our politics, and even redefining what it means to be human.



Having successfully colonized everyday life, these radical technologies are now conditioning the choices available to us in the years to come. Greenfield's timely guide clarifies the scale and nature of the crisis we now confront—and offers ways to reclaim our stake in the future.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Jun 30, 2020
• ISBN: 9781705240984

Reviews for Radical Technologies

[tastor-60018 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

An extremely interesting and in depth look at the radical changes society has already experienced and will continue to experience due to a number of incredible new technologies. It would have likely been a more impactful read closer to its 2017 release as I have already obviously become very familiar with the technologies that were just on the very bleeding edge 7 years ago, but it still had a lot of good insights and explanations making it still well worth the read.